Photos of Oscar Night

Dear Helle and Janet,

Thanks for planning a great evening and thanks for all that you do on and off the water for our racers!!

Please see link attached for all the photos for the evening.  Share with whomever you wish.

When you click the link, you'll see the photos.  Touch the photo and it will expand it to show the full image.

I will keep this link live for 2 weeks, and then remove the photos.  So have everyone check them out soon.

Enjoy and thanks for letting me be the paparazzi!

Chris Albanis

CYC is creating a photo gallery for long term.

Chris used Dropbox to share some files with you! Click here to view CYC RC Oscar Night. © 2013 Dropbox

Sad Race Committee Diaries

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usPcEbOqqmc&feature=youtu.be

Saturday Night - November 23 - Appreciation & Oscars

I know that this party was a good one.  My only measure is that I had a fun time.

Many other people seem to have had fun with our theme and the marvelous decor put together by the Party Committee and club Staff.  The Service awards are lovely champagne flutes with a custom bag for the bottle ( not supplied so you can pick your own ).

Service Awards went to:

Olof A

Nancy A

Nick B - Nick has been promoted and is taking a new position in Reno!

Janet B 5

Cathy B 5

Gaetan C

Melissa C

Christopher C 1

Darcy C

Janet C

Collein D

Jill D

Nikki D

Sean E

Lisa G
Helle G

Jeff G

Chuck G

Joanne G 1

John H

Bob J

Mary J

Lloyd K

Tom K

Karen K 1

Rachel L 2

Stephanie L 1

Rick L

Lynn L

Elissa M

Tim M

Karen M

Jane M

Chris M

Mary M

Chuck N

Debbie N

Bob N 5

Cathy P 1

Michelle R

Mimi R

Ellen S

Amy S 1

Jerry S

Tim S

Nancy S

Scott S

The numbers represent milestone years of service
The biggest hit of the evening was the video, "Sad Race Committee Diaries" put together by Sean and Lynn.  It is hysterical, and we will try to get it on line for all to see again.  People were laughing too loud to catch all the lines.

Our own Robin F was the master of the red carpet and Chris Albanis was the main paparazzi.  Those photos will be available in the near future. 

Oscar Winners:

Most Dramatic Recovery: Helle's iPad

Best Production Design: Erik's Booklet

Best Blog Entry: NOOD, Erik 

Best Costume Design: Maleficent, Darcy Cook 

Best Cuisine: Robin's Coffee Cake

Best Picture: Kris H, It's going to be a long race

Best Performance in a   Leading Role: Bob J, 47 days

Best Performance in a Supporting Role: Helle calling all the volunteers

Best Quote: “Never leave the wheel when you are driving.” - blogged by Joanne G

Best Director: On the Water Director, Lynn, presented with a Director's Chair

Best Chair: Janet B - Thanks for the anemometer, you guys are too Nice!

Next up:  2014 planning.  All Race Committee meeting December 11, at Monroe 6:30


     Janet B

Oscar Nominations

The nominations are presented below for each category.  You may vote only one time, and must mark all categories in the same sitting.  No do-overs!  We share the entire ballot with you below, so that you can be prepared and the actual voting will take only a few moments.  Deciding the best might take longer.  Enjoy.


1. BEST PICTURE

Blacklock on Mute - Ellen Sanpere  

Hats - Janet Baxter’s camera

 

ICC Team - having fun sailing - Chuck Nevel    

 ICC Team, Ready to Roll - Karen Kinsey’s camera

     It’s going to be a long race - Kristin Hosbein

Joke's on you - Ellen Sanpere

                 No wind at Mac finish line - Kristin Hosbein

Mark Set for J111 - Janet Baxter’s camera 

Split gybes, just like we planned it - Joanne Guennewig

2. BEST QUOTE

•  “Haven’t you ever done this before?” Yelled to two new volunteers, one on her first day, the other on her second.
• “It’ll be easy. Don’t worry.” - Lynn Lynch
• “Look at that! Boats on the run evenly split, and now they’re using both gates!” - Various Race Officers
• “Never drink until after you have scored” - Nancy Arnold
• “Never leave the wheel when you are driving.” - blogged by Joanne Gunnewig
• “What is this, a therapy session?” - Jerry Sebold
• "Your Race Committee is in our opinion, one of the best… You’re very fortunate to have this professional organization at your club.” - Dick Olson, Owner of Hobgoblin

3. BEST BLOG ENTRY

• Blog Entry   NOOD Circle C Day 3, June 8 posted on Aug 6 - http://cycrc.blogspot.com/2013/08/out-of-order-sunday-june-8-nood-circle-c.html
• RYF, June 29 - http://cycrc.blogspot.com/2013/06/saturday-june-29-ryf.html
• RYF, August 18 - http://cycrc.blogspot.com/2013/08/ryf-on-very-busy-saturday-on-lake.html
• Verve Inshore, August 25 & 26 - http://cycrc.blogspot.com/2013/08/sat-sun-aug-25-and-25-inshore-verve.html
• RYF, September 21 - http://cycrc.blogspot.com/2013/09/saturday-september-21-2013-ryf.html

4. COSTUME DESIGN

• Maleficent - Darcy Cook    
  
  
  
  • New RC Shirts - Helle Getz
  

• Spiderman NOOD Shoes - Sperry Topsiders  

• Wizard Hat - presented to Erik

5. BEST CUISINE

• Bagels - Tom Keegan
• Carole’s Cookies - Carole Goodman
• Coffee Cake - Robin Finlay
• Cookies - Lloyd Karzen
• Pretzel Rods - Chef Jill Dedinsky

6. BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

• Course Boards - Rick Lillie
• Distance Race courses - Rick Lillie
• Compass spinner - Rick Lillie
• Erik’s Booklet - Erik Schneider

7. MOST DRAMATIC RECOVERY

• Anchoring in almost the right spot to be the offset mark, after losing his engine in the NOOD, and being rounded by the entire fleet with barely a whisper of confusion - Jeff Glowski
• Identifying the log floating in the starting area during the NOOD and alerting the Race Officer - Debbie Norris
• Moving the markset boat closer to the gate, eliminating the potential confusion of boats trying to finish on a shortened course- Janet Baxter
• Helle's i-pad slipped off Carrier, bounced on the deck and went into the water.  Helle yelled “man overboard” and pointed.  A Melges 24 nearby scooped it up and returned it, still dry inside it’s case.- Helle Getz

8. BEST PERFORMANCE BY A RACE COMMITTEE VOLUNTEER IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

• Nancy Arnold - Setting up, running and teaching Regatta Network
• Jill Danly - Survey on communications (emails and phone calls)
• Helle Getz - Calling each of the volunteers for the Verve Cup regatta
• Mary McCarthy - Mid Summer party planning

9. BEST PERFORMANCE BY A RACE COMMITTEE VOLUNTEER IN A LEADING ROLE

• Nancy Arnold - Scoring 65 boats in 31 races for the RYF season
• Bob Johnson - 47+ days on the water
• Tom Keegan - Four races at Sheldon Clark
• Lynn Lynch - As NOOD PRO she attempted to free the wrapped prop
• Rick Lillie - Starting and finishing nearly 40 races

10.
This is where you can enter the raffle - just copy the link in question 10 and paste to your browser.  At that survey, enter the raffle.  This will tell us how many people have voted.  Only the auditors at the accounting firm of PriceWaterhouseCoopers, LLP will see the completed ballots.  No one else will know the results until the envelopes are opened on November 23, 2013.  See you there!

READY TO VOTE?  Click Here:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/D8S677B

Race Committee Wins Inter-Committee Challenge!

After foolishly bragging about our great sailing team all summer, we actually won the regatta!  No one was more surprised than I was, but it just worked out that all the teams had a bad race or 2.  We won race 1 and were last in race two.  We won the final race this morning, moving us to a tie for first overall, and won on the tie breaker.  A total of 8 races were sailed, with each team getting 2 byes.  Not enough boats, even though CYC borrowed 2 from the Goldman Program.  Those were the two boats we got bullets with.

Our team had no skippers, so for the first time since college I stepped up to drive.  After the first race, they couldn't wrestle the tiller out of my hand.  Tim S did the main on Saturday but couldn't join us on Sunday so we taught Amy S how to manage it.  Stephanie L learned about halyards and topping lift and such strings.  The real work was done by our team captain, Karen K.  With energy, strength and enthusiasm, she trimmed jib and kite and set and jibed the pole.  Yes, she was busy.

Captain Karen & RC Chair Janet drink from the Fido Cup

We raced on Saturday morning (SE wind) which was lovely and sunny, then it got a bit cloudy but never rained much on us, thank goodness.  We came in for a big lunch yesterday then back out for more races in a puffy, shifty westerly.  After the races, the competitors gathered and there was too much beer and rum for me, but it seems to have had a worse effect on some of our competition, no matter how slow I felt this morning.

The team rallied behind me and although we were last off the dock we got to the start in time. Today was northerly (again!) and sunny.  We had a nice awards ceremony today at lunch.

We laughed a lot on the boat this weekend.  Sometimes at jokes, sometimes at ourselves and our misfortunes.  I'm amazed and proud that we did so well; it was a great team.  Of course, it is more fun to win!  Each competitor got a great looking and cuddly long sleeve fleece that will make others jealous.  For first place, we each got an embroidered blanket, also quite cuddly.

We tied with the combo team of Mac and Dinghy Committees.  Stations Committee was third.  Our own Amanda A sailed with the Associates Committee and Rick L sailed on the Trophy Committee.  The Race Officer was Darcy Cook and she will write her own blog.  She was assisted by Tom K and Debbie N, with mark setters Lynn L, Chuck N and Scott S.  Sean did the scores and registration.  Jill did the food, which was awesome.  Dwight participated in his first race this weekend, with the Stations Committee.

The trophy is the Fido Cup, awarded to the racing yacht Fido in 1913.  How appropriate!  We'll have all our trophies on display at our Appreciation Dinner, November 23.

Janet B
Photo by Amanda Mason

Saturday, October 5, 2013 - Last RYF

Two races completed. Boats in harbor before storm hit. Two T-10's threatened protests due to windward mark barging. Nothing filed. 

Fleet was 2 J-111, 7 E22, 8 T-10, 6 Sh, 2 L16 and one J70 with Rickover cadets as crew. 4 starts. J70 sailed nicely with Shields.

Wind started at 160 followed by wild shifts from 260 down to 110 due to instability of air. SE wind was not in any forecast. AP went up at first warning as we shifted course by 20 degrees. First legs were square enough. First race went inside out after first leg. We received compliments for not abandoning after first leg. Second race shifts were so wild we Charlied first three sections and withdrew Charlie for last section. 

Scott was great as solo line caller and finish line. He did 75% of the markset decisions and management as well. He called 2 Shields over in second race. This was his first time on line. Nikki was chief recorder, with Stephanie and Peggy (first day). Nikki was also watching me and confirmed my inaccuracies.

Olof and Chris C were very busy at the top with as many as 5 marks in Argo at once. Gaetan and Karen were steady performers at the bottom.

Then there was Rick, timer, sounder, course consultant to Scott, flag trainer, course board trainer so I had to AP once for my timing error in each race. We explained on the radio and had AP down holding delay to only 4 minutes each occurrence.

The sailors were happy, glad to be back before the rain only to be in time to take four masts down in the thunder and rain while  we all watched an supervised. The Belmont bride was forced to have her ceremony inside of Barge #2 but the sun came out for bridal photos on the dock.

Rick L.

Sunday, September 29, 2013 - Autumn Classic - 2nd Day

The second day of the Autumn Classic was another coolish norther.  This 2 day high school event had 20 420s in each of the two divisions and a total of 20 races were sailed.  We raced close to the harbor and coaches brought out the teams swapping in after every two races.

Lynn Lynch repeated from the first day and had Joanne and Janet B. aboard Vanena with Chuck at the top and Mike L. working the bottom of the course.

 

Saturday, September 28, 2013 - RYF

Pretty much a normal day on the RYF scene.  Rick was the Race Officer aboard Carrier with a small but strong team.  It was kind windy from the south.  3 races, Shields, Beneteau 36.7, Etchells

close finish - Split Decision wins!  With husband, wife and all 3 children aboard

trailing the green mark

Saturday, September 21, 2013 - RYF

The morning meeting got off to great excitement because Chuck has a new library card.  What that has to do with the racing, I don't know, but it was fun.

We left the harbor on time, with two people on each mark set (Rick & Karen at the gate and Gaetan and Martin to windward)  and a small but experienced team of Darcy, Janet, Scott, Collien, Nikki and Lisa were aboard Carrier.

NW wind shifting to north (more on that later), usually 12-14 knots but as low as 8 with plenty of 16 and 17.  The waves were 2 to 3 feet, with occasional monsters, but the sky was very blue and it was pretty!

8 Etchells

11 T-10s

5 Shields

2 Luders

about 130 sailors

Pretty, yes- and good sailing, but it was not an easy day.  We set the first race for 335 (or something like that, I'm going from memory) 1.25 and 1.0 and went into sequence.  But we had to postpone before the first start because the P flag did not come down on time.  The timer was interrupted and there was much conversation because several watches had been set off one stopwatch, which we THOUGHT was synched to the GPS, but somewhere a mistake was made.  We decided to keep rolling and were only delayed 5 minutes.  We had 3 OCS on the first start, only 2 returned.

The boat that didn't come back was a past RC Chair, so we decided to give him a professional courtesy by abandoning the race on leg 3.  I'm kidding about that, but we did abandon because the wind shifted and we signaled a change to 350, but the new yellow marks went in at the wrong place.  Seems there was a math problem when calculating the reciprocal.  This is an easy mistake, especially with only one experienced person on the markset.  Unfortunately, the RO and DRO realized it too late, and we were unable to correct it fast enough, although Argo was racing around and doing their best.  Lessons learned:  have those wheely things to help out on each boat, use the chart in Erik's Booklet, check sooner and maybe having extra marks in each mark set boat would give more flexibility.  The sailors were not happy, I'm sure, but they understand and we did not get any unreasonable complaints.

The next race, the re-sail of Race 1, got under way when the boats returned, and when we got the course set up.  The team on Argo had all their marks in the water at point, so there was a lot to pick up.  We considered a longer course, but decided to keep things short and the boats all finished in about 70 minutes.

The last race things got tricky!  After the Etchells started, we postponed and considered abandoning because a 40 degree left shift came in.  Would it go back to the northwest or stay north?  The breeze at the top of the course was 30 to 40 degrees different than the start area for about half an hour.  But it came back and the Etchells did end up with a beat.  After a postponement we started the T-10s, but it was not a pretty picture, as the northwest wind came back.  Several tried to start on port tack but were very early and had to jibe around.  They couldn't lay the skewed line on starboard once they got more than a boat length to leeward.  The best starts were the boats that stayed clean on starboard and then tacked to port,  The line was more square for the final Shields start, which had only two boats left.  One of the Luders had a break down, so they both had gone in.  The breeze came back to the course we'd set at 360 (couldn't find enough zeros for a 000 course).  

Things settled down after that first leg, and all the boats finished, except those that had equipment failures.  We decided that the sailors had had enough bouncing around in the chilly fall like air after the two completed races.  We returned to CYC to watch some America's Cup racing.

The debrief in the bar but upbeat, and Collien was awarded the blue star for her work getting us back on track and then managing multiple postponements on her first day as timer.

Janet B.

Sat & Sun Aug 25 and 25 - Inshore Verve

What a fun weekend we had!

Not that it was easy.  It was challenging and while we didn't get it 100% right, the sailors gave great reviews of the race committee this weekend.

We had the biggest Inshore Verve in recent history:

J 70 - 19
Etchells - 12
Soling - 6
Colgate 26 - 3
J24 - 5
Shields - 4
Luders - 3

and on the B circle:
Laser - 8
Vanguard 15 - 12
Rhodes 19 - 9

Truth be told, it was the weather that made the regatta.
On Saturday winds 8 to 10 from the southeast and blessedly steady, made it seem easy to get 3 races on the A circle and a bunch on the B circle.  But that's what the sailors saw.  Sunday was shifty and although Tom Skilling predicted "gusty", the other forecasts were closer, at 6 to 12 knots.

Race Area A:
Saturday, a nervous Janet B, as Race officer, had great support from Helle and Darcy and never had a concern about the starting sequence due to a dependable timer, Karen M and a supporting cast.  Setting the course was pretty simple because the wind didn't really switch much, although we talked about it every leg.  Bob and "his women" kept things square at the top, while Rick and Joanne raced around the bottom.  An nonscientific poll said that most sailors did not want a fourth race, but it was not unanimous.  They didn't get one, so it doesn't matter.  Warm and sunny with good breeze made it a great day for sailing.

Sunday we had our first Southwester of the season.  It wasn't a blower, but about 6 to 12 over the day, with plenty of shifts.  Chicago's predominate breeze is southwest, but this season, we haven't seen it on a race day.  Hot and sunny, with the upwind view of the city.  Nice!

But shifty. 30 degrees difference between the top at the bottom.  Olaf signed on last minute, Thanks! and helped Helle keep Janet from jumping off the boat as the breeze acted like a typical southwest shifty breeze.  We worked the markset boat teams hard, demanding wind readings, even as they were moving to new locations or pulling marks,  But Bob and another set of women (Mary and Stephanie) kept up a cool conversation on the radio and never missed a mark set or a change.  All marks got in place in time, which wasn't always easy.  On the bottom, we had Rick and Joanne moving the line, squaring the gate and signalling changes.  Just two people- they had a busy day and Joanne drove most of the day.  Not bad, having joined the RC after Mac this year!

At one point the the windward markset had 220 and the signal boat had 250.  In fact, that lasted for a while. So we picked something in between and had a few changes.  We set the third race of the day as a 5 legger.

Almost unanimously, the sailors liked it - another nonscientific poll.  We stuck an extra 5 minutes between the J70s and the Etchells for all races on Sunday, which made the sequence longer, but it was appreciated by both fleets.  On Saturday, the first  few Etchells crossed into the back end of the J70 fleet.  The Etchells seem faster upwind in the lighter stuff but the J70s seem faster downwind.  Either class could start first, but with the same boats again, I would start the Etchells first.  The J70s had a bigger spread from first to last.  Something to consider- it can go either way.

Race Area B
I wasn't on this course, but short staffed, they were pressed hard because running 3 different classes on various courses makes for a merry-go-round of sailboats.  The first sequence goes off, using the "Ollie" for a dinghy start.  The Lasers want a long course, the V-15s love it short and the Rhodes add another dimension.  So the RC is starting one fleet, finishing another and monitoring winds and making changes throughout.  They got in lots of races and all the sailors I spoke with seemed very pleased.  The Race officer there was Lynn with only 2 other people on the signal boat.  I can't imagine how they did it.

Ashore
Nancy A did a great job getting the scores in - emailed from the A course from Melissa. I think Lynn entered the scores from the B course.  B got in earlier, having exhausted both sailors and RC.  Saturday there was pasta dinner, and the usual Verve sponsored cocktails.  Sunday had awards at 4:30 and a very lively bar crowd that drifted out to the docks by about 7:30pm.  I can't say what happened then, but people were pretty happy.

Another successful showing of the CYC RC.  All that training and pressing people into service is worthwhile.  It was fun for me, and I think for all that helped this weekend.  Your service is very appreciated - let's do it again.

Janet B,

Results: http://www.yachtscoring.com/event_results_cumulative.cfm?eID=899

Janet B - my photo's too!

Sat Aug 18 -RYF on a Very Busy Saturday on the Lake!

In addition to the J111 Championships, Corinthian Match Race and the Air and Water Show, we did have RYF racing on Saturday 8/17!

Upon boarding and getting underway upon the fair ship Latham, we noticed we had an extra gear bag with a lovely tankini top.  We wondered who would be swimming.   We soon found out the boat boss of the leeward markset was planning to (and did) take a quick dip in the cool Lake Michigan waters after the first race was underway.

We had great weather - for Air and Water Show spectators; but had to AP due to very low winds.   After about a 40 minute postponement, the first race started with wind speed close to Pi.  (3.14159).

The check in process went smoothly while photos were taken of the aircraft doing tricks and acrobatics, we had 7 Etchells, 1 J-70, 4 T-10's, 1 Shields and 2 Luders.

After getting the first race started, and despite bouncy conditions that tend towards seasickness, everyone ate lunch.....chicken curry or chicken curry and no one lost their lunch!  The best part being the fudge stripe cookies.  Love those cookies from the tree house!

Winds picked up in the second race to about 5-6 knots which was great for everyone.   The PRO did hear the DRO's concern for a square course and had the finish mark reset prior to the finish for the second race.  

One lesson learned, confirm that the windward markset boat knows that there is no offset for the short mark.

Finally the quote of the day...."Never leave the wheel when it's in gear."   What happens on the RC boat stays on the RC boat.   I'll never tell.....

Thanks for a fun day on the Signal boat Nick, Janet, Amy and Stephanie!
Joanne G.

Monday, August 12 - Tall Ships Race Start

A unique opportunity to see the ships sail off to South Haven.  Don G. was the PRO and Bob J was the boat driver.  They were assisted by Todd and Lloyd setting marks, Marge and Mimi recording and Janet B doing flags (Todd did that too).  We also had some guest experts from the American Sail Training Association (ASTA), Erin and Patty, who kindly gave us some flags to add to our collection.

It was a fine end to a long weekend of the Maritime Festival, featuring 14 Tall Ships, The Grade 1 Chicago Match Cup event and unofficially, our own Verve Cup.